Quality, Experience, and Compassion
Dr. Anir Dhir was born in Detroit to immigrant parents from Germany and India. After graduating with a B.S. in Biomedical & Electrical Engineering with honors from the University of Texas at Austin, he attended Baylor College of Medicine, where he was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha - the medical honor society. He completed his Dermatology residency at Emory University in Atlanta and then pursued a fellowship in Mohs surgery and facial reconstruction in Birmingham, Alabama with world-renowned Gary Monheit, MD – a Tucson native and Past President of the American College of Mohs Surgery, American Society for Dermatologic Surgery, and American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery.
From 1999 to 2015, Dr. Dhir was a partner with Dermatology Associates of Kentucky in Lexington. He was the busiest Mohs surgeon in Kentucky, where he performed 30,000 Mohs surgeries with a cure rate of over 99.5% and an infection rate of 0.2%. He served as the Medical Director of the only Medicare- and AAAHC-accredited ambulatory surgery center (ASC) ever built in Kentucky dedicated to dermatologic surgery. In 2003, Dr. Dhir was first elected to Best Doctors in America by his colleagues - an honor awarded to the Top 4% of U.S. Physicians. Since 2004, he has also been recognized as a Castle Connolly Top Doctor - a recognition given to only 7% of all U.S. board-certified physicians. Dr. Dhir has authored several publications and served as faculty at numerous national scientific meetings. He has been interviewed as a dermatologic expert on ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS and in publications such as Newsweek. Dr. Dhir was first board-certified by the American Board of Dermatology in 1998 and has been a Fellow in the American College of Mohs Surgery since 1999. He also carries subspecialty board certification in Micrographic Dermatologic Surgery.
After raising their children, Dr. Dhir’s love of the Southwest and recognition of Tucson’s skin cancer epidemic led him and Nathalie to relocate to Tucson in 2017. Dr. Dhir practiced with HealthySkin Dermatology for 3 years before opening Arizona Mohs Surgery & Dermatology in 2020. In Tucson, he and his team have performed 14,000 Mohs surgeries. His goal is to use his significant Mohs surgical and ASC management experience to deliver compassionate, ASC-level surgical care in a less expensive, more comfortable office setting.
Shelby Coplen, PA-C, joined our experienced team in 2024. She is a Physician Assistant who has practiced medical dermatology in Tucson since 2018. Shelby is originally from Indiana, where she attended Indiana University and obtained a Bachelor of Science in Biology with honors in 2014. She was also inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa academic honors society through a selective, merit-based invitation process. Shelby continued her education at the prestigious Butler University, where she received her Masters of Physician Assistant Studies degree in 2017.
Shelby started her career working in gastroenterology, where she gained experience working with many conditions that have associated dermatologic complications including inflammatory bowel disease and liver cirrhosis. She then started working in dermatology and is passionate about early detection and prevention of skin cancer. She is a member of the Society of Dermatology Physician Associates and has completed the rigorous SDPA Diplomat Fellowship program - a training program for PAs in dermatology. She has extensive experience in skin cancer screenings, non-surgical treatment of skin cancer, and treatment of chronic dermatological conditions such as atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, rosacea, and acne. Shelby currently resides in Tucson with her husband, who recently completed his PhD degree at UA. In her free time, Shelby enjoys hiking, traveling, and spending time with her husband and young daughter.
B.S. in Biomedical / Electrical Engineering with Honors
University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 1990
Baylor College of Medicine with Honors, Houston, Texas, 1994
Internship, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, 1995
Dermatology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, 1998
Mohs Micrographic Surgery and Cutaneous Oncology
Gary Monheit, MD, Birmingham, Alabama, 1999
Mohs Micrographic Surgery for Skin Cancer (44,000 cases performed)
Best Doctors in America, 2003-12, 2015-2022
Castle Connolly Top Doctor, 2004-2025
Hewlett Packard Top Medical Graduate Award (Top 5 Students), 1994
Alpha Omega Alpha (medical honor society), 1993
Engineering Scholar Award (Top 5%), 1990
Arizona, Kentucky (inactive), and Florida (inactive)
Family, Physical Fitness, Automotive Racing, Cooking
Radical Cup Prototype Racing Series, Rookie of the Year, 2017
A young lady at the entrance greeted me in such a friendly manner that the expression on her face, her posture, and her words caught my attention. The instructions are also striking: "you may bathe", "please try to stop smoking", "we would prefer", "please perform a few days", "please be patient as you heal." And finally, "We wish you a speedy recovery." These instructions come from doctors and nurses who are authorities in dermatology. Yet, they are delightfully modest.
Thanks for your friendly service provided by your staff and the best and most efficient healthcare from the heart of one of the most prestigious physicians in Dermatology.
Thank you for the very professional and personal care you and your staff provided me yesterday. No one looks forward to surgery of any kind. But your manner and clarity of explanations help to set me at ease. Your staff was very warm, very caring, yet very professional. They explained each part of the process, leaving no uncertainties in my mind about what to expect next. It was very assuring as we moved through the procedure.
In my observation, it is clear very little goes on in your office without distinct deliberation. It seems you have an exact process for everything – from the knock on the door while a patient is waiting to the language on the handout being exact, engaging, and grammatically correct. You are not only an outstanding surgeon, but an outstanding businessman/ manager/etc. It shows in your office and in your people.
You have been absolutely wonderful during this surgery. Thanks so much for your genuine concern and kindness. All of us have been so impressed with your medical expertise, as well as your sincere (and almost forgotten) love for your profession and your patients. You truly are the epitome of a great physician—one to be highly recommended, respected, and recognized. Thanks so much for a job well done and for treating your patients as people, not simply a paycheck.
Special thanks for performing surgery on my face recently . I appreciate all the discipline, experience, and education you have invested over the years in order to become an excellent surgeon. You are really serving the public well and saving lives as you go. Congratulations to you and your fine firm.
Thank you for the excellent care I received on my visit from you and your staff…By the end of week two, you cannot tell where the surgery site was.
Thank you for a successful Mohs surgery. I was very confident in your abilities and it was a pleasure to meet you.
Just want you to know how pleased I was with the exceptional care received. Never in my 84 years have I felt so comfortable in a medical setting!
Thank you for the opportunity to work here and all that I have learned. Thank you for always standing up for what is right and for always defending the employees. I appreciate that very much! I wish you all the best!
